Tag: Trent Williams

Jay Gruden excited to see the progress Jawaan Taylor makes in second season

Jaguars coordinator Jay Gruden seems fond of some of the pieces in place in Jacksonville and Jawaan Taylor is clearly among them.

Quarterback Gardner Minshew II isn’t the only player who fans are excited about from the Jacksonville Jaguars’ 2019 rookie class as the team’s early selections showed promise, too. Of course, the first name that comes to mind is Josh Allen, who beat the Jags’ rookie sack record with 10.5 and was nominated to the Pro Bowl.

The second player is someone who went under-the-radar in offensive tackle Jawaan Taylor, who already appears to have made a fan of new offensive coordinator Jay Gruden. In this week’s video call with the media, Gruden was asked about rather or not he was excited about the growth of the young tackle and it led to a bunch of high praise towards him.

“One hundred percent, yes,” said Gruden in the Zoom conference. “He’s long, he’s athletic and he plays with the tenacity that you love from a tackle. I am very excited to get to work with him at right tackle. He can run, he can pull, he can get out there on screens, he’s physical in the running game and he can pass protect, he’s got great feet. He’s got every quality that you want in an offensive tackle and the more experience he gets and handing some of the movement up front, the better he’s going to be.”

Talk about high praise for the second-year player.

Gruden’s fondness towards Taylor isn’t shocking when looking at what he had in Washington. On the blindside for his group was Trent Williams, who was a massive force at 6-foot-5, 318 pounds. While Taylor (6-foot-5, 312-pounds) plays on the opposite side, the traits that Gruden explained are very identical to those of Williams, who is a seven-time Pro Bowler.

Taylor will be coming off a rookie season where he struggled early and garnered 16 total penalties, good for second in the league. However, during the last quarter of the season, he played significantly better and many have been excited to see his growth in 2020. He also proved to be an ironman for the Jags and was the only rookie in the league to play in 100% of his snaps, so Gruden also is probably impressed with his toughness, too.

Adrian Peterson was not a fan of the Trent Williams trade

Adrian Peterson was good friends with Trent Williams, and he wasn’t happy to see the LT get traded away this offseason.

Depending on what side of the trade you were on, fans were either really happy or slightly annoyed by the Washington Redskins sending left tackle, Trent Williams, to the San Francisco 49ers for a couple of mid-round draft picks in return.

For Adrian Peterson, the Redskins veteran running back who had gotten to be good friends with Williams — a seven-time Pro-Bowler — getting rid of one of the best linemen in the NFL was not something that he was thrilled about, though he understood why it was done.

Since coming to Washington, Peterson has developed a nice relationship with Williams, and he reportedly talked to Trent a lot last fall during the LT’s contract holdout from the team. Not only did he lose one of his good friends on the team, but he also lost one of his best blockers on the front line as well.

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Top quotes from Redskins’ LT Saahdiq Charles press conference

Charles is one of the most polarizing players in the Redskis draft class, as many love his talent but are uncertain of his off-field issues.

One of the many surprise selections that the Washington Redskins made in the 2020 NFL Draft came in the start of the fourth round, minutes after the team finally traded away left tackle Trent Williams to the San Francisco 49ers.

With the second pick on Day 3, the Redskins took LT Saahdiq Charles out of LSU, a talented player who had been falling on the board due to a number of off-field issues. Some scratched their heads at this, surprised that Ron Rivera chose to take on a project player in his first year with the team. However, it has since become clear that the Redskins are comfortable with the struggles that have hindered Charles off the field, and confident in their ability to keep him on the straight and narrow while watching him blossom on the field.

On Wednesday afternoon, Charles sat down on a video call with local media members to discuss what life has been like since being drafted, and where he sees his future going from here.

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Adrian Peterson, Trent Williams named to PFF All-Decade Top 101

Peterson and Williams have been named as two of the best 101 players from the 2010s decade, and they’re still going strong in the league.

Two Washington Redskins-adjacent players have been named to the Pro Football Focus All-Decade Top 101 players list, thanks to the accolades they’ve picked up in the NFL since 2010.

Redskins running back Adrian Peterson comes in at No. 35 on the list, and former Redskins left tackle Trent Williams slots further down the list at No. 59. Peterson, who built most of his Hall of Fame resume in Minnesota with the Vikings, is now holding it down in Washington and proving that Father Time may be willing to wait for some people. As for Williams, he saw his long-tenured relationship with the Redskins come to pass last month when the two sides finally agreed to trade him away to the San Francisco 49ers.

Though both players might have dropped off a bit from their playing peak, the nominations are well deserving. For Peterson, his time in Minnesota was spent becoming one of the best running backs to ever play in the NFL and remaining dominant despite having a non-presence in the passing game.

“Peterson’s MVP season of 2012 was the highest single-season grade we ever gave to a running back over the decade,” PFF’s Sam Monson wrote. “In over 10 years of action, he gained more than 6,000 rushing yards after contact, breaking 364 total tackles over the regular season.”

As for Williams, he made it to seven consecutive Pro Bowls with the Redskins before his relationship with the team started to fray and eventually, break.

Trent Williams took a season or so to get going in the NFL — his rookie year earned a PFF grade of just 63.4 — but once he was cooking, he quickly became one of the best linemen in the league,” Monson wrote. “Since that rookie season, he hasn’t earned a grade lower than 75.0 and was above 80.0 for six straight seasons. His 2016 season was perhaps his best, surrendering just 16 total pressures over the season. Injuries have been the only blight on his career, but his on-field play has been exceptional, grading well consistently as both a run-blocker and pass-protector over the majority of the decade.”

While the Redskins representation was thin for the 2010s, we can at least hope that the list for the 2020s will have a bit more Burgundy & Gold on it.

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Have Redskins surrounded Dwayne Haskins with enough weapons to succeed?

Haskins has been labeled as one of the ‘losers’ from the 2020 offseason, though the Redskins have given him some solid offensive weapons.

The Washington Redskins used draft picks in the third and fourth rounds of the 2020 NFL Draft to directly help quarterback Dwayne Haskins. With the selections of RB Antonio Gibson, LT Saahdiq Charles, and WR Antonio Gandy-Golden, the Redskins added valuable pieces to either protect the QB’s blindside or give him some weapons of offense, two things that are of great importance in the NFL for a young passer.

However, ESPN’s Bill Barnwell released his column of Winner’s and Loser’s from the 2020 NFL offseason on Tuesday, and in it, he had Haskins labeled as the latter.

On the other hand, there’s a member of that 2019 quarterback class who might feel left out among all the additions. Washington did avoid the lure of using the second overall pick on a quarterback, but it did little to help its starting quarterback.

Haskins’ receiving corps beyond Terry McLaurin was lacking last season, and the most notable free agents his team imported to help out its young starter were Cody Latimer and Richard Rodgers. Washington used midround picks on hybrid back Antonio Gibson and wideout Antonio Gandy-Golden, but it also traded away star left tackle Trent Williams without adding a meaningful replacement.

On the surface, sure — those may not add up to a great offseason for Haskins and the Redskins, but any fan who knows the workings of those deals likely feels pretty good about all of those choices. Let’s break it down.

First of all, if you want to knock Washington for not drafting better offensive weapons, remember that they used their first-round pick on Chase Young — the best player in the draft — and their second-round pick was part of the deal that landed Montez Sweat in Washington last season. On top of that, AGG was rated by many to have a second- or third-round grade but fell only because of the depth at the position, and the coaching staff feels confident that they can plug Gibson into a Christain McCaffrey-type role in Scott Turner’s offense.

Then there’s the Trent Williams trade. To argue that getting rid of one of the best LT’s in the NFL is bad for a QB is not wrong, but when you consider that Williams had just sat out for the majority of the 2019 season, and was likely to do the same in 2020 had the Redskins not given him a new contract — which was unlikely — then holding onto that relationship would have been incredibly detrimental. Now, with Williams out of the building, the team is able to start fresh and focus on the players who do want to be there, rather than try to win the favor of those who don’t.

They may not have drafted the star tight end that everyone wanted, but they picked up a do-it-all running back, as well as a possession receiver who can offer an outlet in contentious situations, and a talented LT with hopes of him becoming a solid starter down the road. It may not be the most talented roster in the NFL, but the Redskins are doing what they can to surround Haskins with the talent that he needs to succeed. We’ll see if he can in 2020.

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The Redskins are a perfect landing spot for FA Jason Peters

The Redskins have a chance to potentially sign FA left tackle Jason Peters, which would help improve their line a great deal in 2020.

The Washington Redskins have a lot of money to spend over the next few months in free agency, but there’s nothing saying that they won’t choose to pocket that money and go on. However, if they were inclined to add another player to their roster, there is one veteran who could help them improve by leaps and bounds in 2020 alone.

His name is Jason Peters, and he’s a left tackle from the Philadelphia Eagles. You’ve likely heard of him. Over the past several years he’s been one of the better LTs in the NFL, but the Eagles decided to let him walk this past season, looking for a younger and cheaper option. Now on the open market, the Redskins seem to be a perfect landing spot for him for a year.

“Re-signing with the Eagles could be the play here for Peters, but what about division rival Washington, which just traded away Trent Williams?” asked ESPN’s Matt Bowen, via ESPN.com. “Peters would upgrade the left tackle position for new coach Ron Rivera.”

The Redskins finally got Williams off of the books this past spring by trading him to the San Francisco 49ers, and they drafted a rookie LT out of LSU — Saahdiq Charles. Still, there is nothing guaranteeing that he will rise to the level of a starter by Week 1, and the other options they have at the position — Lucas Cornelius and Geron Christian — inspire little confidence as of yet either. Landing Peters on a one-year deal to ensure that Haskins is protected on his backside could do wonders for the team. We all know that Peters is still capable, as well, thanks to this video that was posted on social media.

If the Redskins don’t choose to make this move, it’s understandable. They may feel confident with what they have, and we have to trust Ron Rivera in assessing that. However, signing Peters to a short term deal seems to make a ton of sense, and it would undoubtedly fire up the fanbase.

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Ron Rivera hints at possibility of adding another LT to Redskins roster

The Redskins have three LT’s on the roster, but there’s a good chance they choose to add another in free agency this offseason.

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Heading into the stretch run of the 2020 offseason, the Washington Redskins have largely set their roster for the next season, though many players will be cut before all is said and done, and a few will be added.

While the depth chart can be assumed, for the most part, there are a few areas of concern going forward. One of the biggest positions that remain up in the air is at left tackle. Washington drafted LSU’s Saahdiq Charles in the fourth round of the NFL Draft last weekend, and they also have Cornelius Lucas and Geron Christian on the roster. So who is the most likely to start at the LT spot in 2020, and is there a chance that the starter isn’t yet on the roster?

According to head coach Ron Rivera, it’s not out of the question. On Wednesday, Rivera talked to Team 980’s Kevin Sheehan and discussed the future at that position.

“There’s still a couple of guys out there that we’ve talked about, but we do like the young guys that we’ve added,” Rivera said. “We’ve got some guys that can come in and compete. We’ll find out.”

There are a few big names left on the left tackle free-agent market, headlined by former Philadelphia Eagles LT Jason Peters. Adding Peters to the Redskins roster makes a ton of sense, seeing as he could act as a high-level stop-gap player for the 2020 season, but it’s a relationship that becomes complicated when you consider that his agent is Vincent Taylor, who also works with Trent Williams. Though Washington and Trent have now gone separate ways, it’s no stretch to say that the relationship between agent and team has been slightly contentious over the past year.

So while we have may have a few options that are in-house already, there’s definitely a chance that Washington adds a new LT to the mix this summer.

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Ron Rivera confirms Redskins were offered 1st-round pick for Trent Williams in 2019

Washington only got two mid-round picks in return for Pro-Bowl LT Trent Williams, but Rivera confirmed that price was a 1st-rounder in 2019.

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While any fan of the Washington Redskins is probably feeling some relief that veteran left tackle Trent Williams is no longer on the roster, and the long trade saga has finally come to an end, it’s understandable to feel a bit of regret, as well. Not regret that Trent is gone, but regret at what the team got in return.

The Redskins traded Williams to the San Francisco 49ers for a 2020 fifth-round pick — which was used to draft C Keith Ismael — plus a 2021 third-round pick. For a seven-time Pro-Bowler who still stands as one of the best LTs in the NFL, this is chump change. However, with the contract situation, plus the fact that he hasn’t played a game since 2018, this was likely the best price they could have gotten for him.

When discussing the ordeal with Team 980’s Kevin Sheehan, Redskins coach Ron Rivera admitted that this value was less than he was worth, though it was the best they could have gotten.

“Well I know this much — there was an opportunity, from what I was told, that last year just before the trade deadline, he was worth a first-round pick For whatever reason, the deal was never done,” Rivera said on Wednesday. “Then, because he didn’t play for a year, that number somehow changed. He’s still that kind of player, he still has that skillset, and he’s a guy that’s going to go to San Francisco and should play well for them.”

This isn’t major news, but it confirms what we all believed to be true: that former Washington team president Bruce Allen once received offers for a first-round pick in return for Williams, and he turned it down.

Need I say more? At this point, I guess it’s just time to be happy that Allen is gone, and Trent is gone, and the team at least feels decent about what they got in return.

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Trent Williams’ agent: ’49ers had the best offer on the table’

“It was more of, got down to it and the 49ers had the best offer on the table,” Vincent Taylor said on SiriusXM NFL Radio.

After Trent Williams has reportedly been traded to the 49ers, it seems like the sweepstakes for the tackle is finally over.

Williams agent, Vincent Taylor, addressed the Williams deal now that it’s finalized, and he mentioned the Vikings when doing so.

Taylor said on SiriusXM NFL Radio the Vikings were likely the team talking with Washington the longest, per the Star Tribune’s Ben Goessling.

“For whatever reason, why their deal didn’t get consummated before the 49ers came in ultimately and obviously had the best offer for the Redskins, I’m not exactly sure,” Taylor said on SiriusXM NFL Radio. “To that nature, it was more of, got down to it and the 49ers had the best offer on the table.”

Taylor also said that Minnesota was “one of the team[s] that was involved and really wanted Trent’s services.”

NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported that Williams didn’t want to do a deal with the Vikings. Taylor later came out and denied that his client and him objected to particular trades, saying that there has been false reporting on the subject. Williams told ESPN that the report saying he objected to a Vikings trade was not true.

Could DE Ryan Kerrigan be the next Redskin on the trading block?

The Redskins were finally able to get Trent Williams off the books this past weekend, so could Ryan Kerrigan be the next veteran to go?

The Washington Redskins made a trade over the past weekend that had been looming for well over a year. Veteran left tackle Trent Williams was shipped out to the San Francisco 49ers, bringing back a fifth-round pick, as well as a third-round pick in 2021. It may not have been the level of compensation that the Redskins had initially hoped for, but it was definitely the best they could do, given the circumstances.

Now that Williams is out the door, is there one trade left to be made in Washington, though? Pro Football Focus asked the same question this week, pegging veteran DE Ryan Kerrigan as an interesting name that could pop up in a few trade scenarios going forward.

The Redskins are loaded up front with former first-rounders along the defensive line, and Chase Young is now added to the mix after being selected with the No. 2 overall pick in the draft. While it’s enticing to head into the season with Young, Kerrigan and 2019 first-rounder Montez Sweat forming one of the best edge rush trios in the league, a long-term team-building approach could make Kerrigan expendable and enticing for teams that may still have pass-rushing needs post-draft. Kerrigan took a step back last season, but he’s still a capable pass-rusher, notching at least 60 pressures in six of his nine seasons in the league.

While fans may argue that it would be criminal to trade Kerrigan away — a player who is a Redskin to the bone — it’s hard to argue that he may have a better opportunity to succeed elsewhere, and the asset that he delivers in return could be more valuable than what he presents to the team right now. In complete honestly, Kerrigan is no longer a pivotal player for the Redskins, as they have moved on to younger and more productive options at his position, so it could make sense to move him if the price is right.

Of course, that last bit is key. The price has to be right, and Ron Rivera and the Redskins have to feel that they are doing right by the player who has given his heart and soul to the team.

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